The American Experience

When I was a child in the Southern Baptist churches I met quite a few missionaries. Since there were deacons and pastors in my family we often had missionaries in our home when they were in the states.

One missionary wife I knew pretty well had spent the years her four children were young in Bangladesh. One of those children, Margaret, grew up to be my first child’s kindergarten teacher. That year she had a Celebration of World Culture Week. She taught us all how to count to ten in the Bangladesh language. (I may be remembering this incorrectly now, but I think the area in which she had lived her first ten years was called Pakistan then, and later was changed to Bangladesh. But I could be remembering that incorrectly.)

I still remember how to count to ten in that language, 40 years later, though the spelling may be off a bit:

Ek

Dui

Tin

Char

Pach

Choi

Saat

Aat

Noi

Dosh

Margaret is qualified to be president of the United States and if she ran I’d vote for her.

It would be quite disturbing to me to be told she is not qualified because she knows nothing about THE American Experience – based on the fact that she spent ten years in another country when she was young.

Representative Steve King of Iowa said President Obama is not qualified to be president because he knows nothing about THE American Experience. He spent two years in Indonesia as a child. He attended Catholic schools and joined the Boy Scouts while there.

I have to wonder if the missionaries who taught him at the Catholic school would be unqualified to be president because they spent more than two years in Indonesia.

Another thing Mr. King said was, "We grew up in this kind of a cultured environment when we hear our national anthem, we stop, we take our hats off," he continued. "We place our hand over our heart and we gaze at the flag with admiration and appreciation for those who have gone before us and what they have done." (1)

We spent quite a few years at baseball games while our grandson was a teenager. He played all kinds of sports and baseball was my favorite. We went to every game. My husband coached a church team once and was assistant coach for many of our grandson’s teams.

If I had a dime for every time I saw people NOT standing up and taking off their hats for the National Anthem I’d be too wealthy for you guys. And even when people did stand up, very few of them removed their baseball caps. And even fewer put their hands over their hearts. And yet, baseball is THE American Experience if anything is.

Most teenagers do not or will not stand, remove their hats, and put their hands over their hearts if some adult nearby does not nudge them and insist.

Obama was much like most teenagers, except I believe most kids are poorer and have parents and grandparents who are not as well-educated and successful as President Obama’s family was.

When we were at a ballgame one night a young mother was preoccupied with her children and did not stand for the anthem. A drunk man stumbled by and started yelling at her that she shouldn’t be allowed to live in America because she had no respect for the National Anthem. The coach took his hand off his heart and put his cap back on while the Anthem was still playing, and he grabbed the man and ushered him to the parking lot. Therefore, I saw two fine adults who were preoccupied and did not put the National Anthem first that night. It is easy for me to imagine that President Obama had a lot on his mind when the anthem played and may have simply forgotten to put his hand over his heart. It has been my (American) experience to forget to do that too, a few times when my mind was elsewhere. At least he did stand up. I’m sure he’s very sorry his mind was elsewhere that day. But it’s not worth all this hullabaloo because nobody is perfect all the time. Not even the readers of this blog.

King is making himself look like a less-than-bright man in a number of ways with his statement. For one thing, “grew up in this kind of a cultured environment” is not grammatically correct.

Cultured means something is characterized by refined taste and manners and good education.

Does that mean you have to have refined taste and manners and good education to be an American? If so, President Obama has it made. He’s far better educated than most Americans, for instance.

It’s not surprising, though, to find a politician these days who doesn’t speak English well and isn’t well-educated enough to know when he’s torturing the language. We forgive those flaws if a politician shares our political views, but he doesn’t deserve it if he uses his flawed mindset to constantly belittle the President of the United States of America in public for having had a bit more cultured childhood than most.

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"If so, President Obama has it made. He’s far better educated than most Americans, for instance."

Well...he certainly thinks he's smarter than anyone else!

By the way...just HOW well is he educated, Lucinda? You don't know. Or, are you privy to the secret transcripts, hidden from the public for some reason (who has a right to know)? For all we know, he was average...or below...spending all his days still hanging with the "choom gang", and harassing people on the beach. We certainly know he was hanging with domestic terrorists and anti-American allies. I'm sure he got a lot of that in his "education", especially since colleges have been allowing complete takeovers by hiring old '60's anti-establishment, anti-American radicals to poison the minds of youth. Those are the people who can't make it in the real world, so they bitterly assume nobody else should, either, and make their careers living off the system they hate by becoming highly-paid career college people, and spreading their hate. They are hypocrites...and probably don't even realize it. Because...y'know...they are well-educated...but not very smart. Why should they be? Most of them have never had "the American experience".

Besides...a college "education" doesn't make one smart. Some of the most intelligent and successful people in history never got their minds mushed by the higher education system, which seemingly is in place to make great profit by telling people WHAT to think, instead of HOW to think.

Joe Biden was a college graduate...and he's amongst the dumbest people on the planet!

"Cultured means something is characterized by refined taste and manners and good education."

Well...he and Michelle (his belle) have certainly acquired quite the taste for the finer things in life, paid for by the taxpayers...and used at every opportunity possible...even when he should be doing his job, instead.

As far as manners, he's a wise-cracking smart-mouthed trouble-making punk, whose "humor" is caustic and completely disrespectful to anyone with whom he disagrees. Lies flow out of his mouth as forcefully as water from a fire hose never turned off, and he has never once admitted he may be wrong about anything. Is that what you call "cultured", Lucinda?

for not only the Country, Flag, and National Anthem, but life itself, stems from our public schools being run by a bunch of liberals. The disrespect and disdain obama shows for the US stems from the education he received from his America hating liberal mother and from the America hating dreams from his father!!

American Heritage Dictionary definition of fascism: "...a system of government that exercises a dictatorship of the extreme right, typically through the merging of state and business leadership, together with belligerent nationalism."

Paul says in Acts 23: 5, "‘Do not speak evil about the ruler of your people.” He was referring to Exodus 22:8 in the Jewish law.

Sarah Palin is a Pentecostal who speaks in tongues. That is, she is apparently zealous to do everything she reads in the Bible (but with caveats). Yet, with her politics, there seems to be a disconnect. With politics you can be as ruthless and vindictive as you want because, I guess, God doesn't look at politics (though he does watch Fox News occasionally).

So we rationalize, right? We read over this comment of Paul's. Paul was actually apologizing for railing at the high priest of the Jewish faith (in a similar manner to Jesus, actually).

So go ahead and pile rubbish on Obama. I know your heart is in the right place. You're just trying to save your country. Ignore the fact that, according to Bible standards, Obama is not just there by appointment of elections but by God's appointment, whether you like him or not and whether he is "evil" or not (he isn't).

In Daniel 2: 21 it says, "He (God) changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others."

To the Christian that means that you can no more change the season than you can the ruler. So it's saying, apparently, that if you denigrate your ruler, you are essentially questioning God.

Anyway, that was my thought about that. Carry on.

So since it is no longer possible to vote Obama out, the good Christians want to impeach him, sue him, block him, slander him, and anything short of assassinate him (and some CINOs would probably volunteer to do that).

want to sue him or do I care about impeaching him. I just want him and all of his merry little band of followers to leave. And I want people like you to pull your heads up and out into the real world. Just because he is your god and you worship him doesn't mean we have tuned our backs on the True God. Sorry but Obamma is not a god. You can worship all the false gods you want but you will have to face the real God in the end. So just keep on with your worshiping your king god Obamma. I will keep praying for the country and for people like you.

2 Peter 2
[ False Teachers and Their Destruction ] But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.

I think Obama is an excellent example of exploiting with fabricated stories. Far as I am concerned your one of the many that is following the depraved conduct.

I'm not hired by the people of the U.S. to represent all. If I was, I certainly wouldn't be disrespectful and acidic to a large portion of citizens (his bosses) as this president is. I also wouldn't appease (and bow) to our foes, while throwing rotten tomatoes at our allies.

A "leader" leads for the good of all he leads. This president doesn't actually lead anything...he's just there for empty teleprompter speeches full of accusations, blame-throwing and disinformation, nasty disrespectful off-the-cuff remarks...and, mostly...campaign fund-raising (which is his only talent). And partying. Plenty of leisure and partying. With the 1%er Hollywood hypocrites, east coast liberal elite, sports stars, gangsta rappers, etc. And golf. Don't forget golf (Nerobama golfs while the world burns).

I'm not in charge of the country, having sworn to do this:

"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States."

The man has literally "sworn on a stack of Bibles"...but has openly and willfully disregarded his vows.

A good, honest "leader" does not disrespect and demonize a large portion of those he leads, nor does he throw his "useful-idiot friends" under the bus to consistently avoid blame for absolutely everything.

A good leader works with those of whom he disagrees to come up with fair and workable solutions, instead of slamming doors in their faces and doing only want he wants.

And, I haven't sought a position of power over others, necessitating the acts of civility, respect and statesmanship that true leaders should possess, but Obama sorely lacks. In fact, it's his duty to exhibit those traits, but an impossibility due to his arrogant, petulant nature.

It's not my job. See the difference, Lunn? But, it is (still) my freedom to point out, and object to, his lack of all things that a good leader should possess.

Obama is NOT a nice person, or an honorable man. He tops the list, by a mile, of the most disgraceful, ineffectual and divisive presidents...and we've had some truly bad ones. Of both parties.

PH ans Nuny Well put and you both are right on with your comments. Libs can and more than likely never will be able to understand how,what and why this country was found and formed. It was founded on principals that God would have wanted. We all know how much you libs really worship your god Obamma. But sorry to tell you that Obamma IS NOT GOD. So the sooner you understand what and who he is the better off you will be. You want better things for yourself,family and country? Wake up before its too late.

No, he has not. He has been going down his own distorted road the entirety of his life and is intent on dragging us down with him.

Let us each vow, today, that we will not go gentle into the good night, but rage, against the dying night.

The pathetic truth about people such as those in the Obama Administration and its supporters is that they enjoy the blessings of liberty for themselves while all the time destroying the blessings of liberty for others. These people have reaped where they did not sow, they are thieves and hustlers

They deny the basis from which these blessings derive and thrive, claiming the result of virtue and goodness - nothing new here.

The sad fact is that these people are simply a reflection of who we are as a nation. There are entire classes of citizens (illegal in collusion with non citizens) that rather enjoy the fruits of your labor and think the present situation is just fine, except they are not receiving nearly enough. Better get busy, America - it is very late. We are "One nation, Under God, Indivisible with liberty and justice for all." This is worth fighting for and rejecting any thought that DIMINISHES this solid declaration of our great nation.

Obama is an avowed enemy of the very fabric of this republic. He is not a good man.

we didn't even have to get to the egregious Holder...and his refusal to uphold the laws he is charged with upholding, including neglecting to advise the obamaness not to continue violating Constitutional law....as he constitutionally should...all of these people did their utmost to educate themselves on the Constitution solely in order to figure out how they could violate it and get away with same...